Yokai no Oto:Sound of the Demon Part 1
by Dark King Kain
Summary: Hated and scorned by Konaha, Naruto flees the village at age 5, where he meets a strange man and his adopted daughter, who take him with them, and teach him the true way of the ninja. Naru x Harem, Gender Bending, Strong/Smart Naruto.
1. Chapter 1

**Oto no Yokai: Sound of the Demon**

_**Part 1, Chapter 1**_

**A Demon's Path: The Beginning**

"There he is!" "Let's kill the Demon!" "Today's the day the Yondaime's work is finally finished!" The yells and cheers followed the child as he ran, wide-eyed and looking for all the world as if the hounds of hell were on his tail. Thing is, they might as well have been, because the ones after him were no more forgiving or compassionate as them. Teenagers, young men and women, the middle-aged, even the elderly. It seemed as though the entire population of his home village was after him, as he fled desperately. He heard the telltale movements that he had learned from experience told him that it wasn't just civilians, ninja followed him across the rooftops, waiting for a clear angle to hit him from. He saw the open gate up ahead, and ran for it, not realizing that in his primal fear, he had drawn on a sleeping power within him, as his speed increased, the civilians stopping at the gate, but the ninja continuing the pursuit.

The boy was none other than the Bane of Konahagakure, Uzumaki Naruto. Today was his fifth birthday, but it wasn't a cause for celebration, either in his eyes, or the villagers'. Today was the day when, five years earlier, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, had all but destroyed the great village. Only by the sacrifice of their beloved Yondaime Hokage, had the beast been stopped. A big part of the reason he was so beloved by the survivors was because he made that sacrifice. Naruto didn't know why they hated him, maybe it was because since he was born the same day of the attack, they thought the dying beast had become him. But that didn't make sense, so he really had no clue, but on every birthday, most of the civilians and more than half of the ninja of his village would form into a mob and chase him down. But it had never been this bad before, they had always stopped when he ran outside of the village. This time though, the ninja who had lost their families during the attack, lead by a certain Chuunin named Mizuki, were out for the blood of the young boy.

He ran faster than he had ever run before, the odd energy fueling him, allowing him to run harder and longer than ever before. But it wasn't going to be enough. The more than ten full squads closed in for the kill, as a pair of kunai bit deep into the lower part of his legs, slicing muscle, ripping flesh, and even piercing bone. The child curled up, waiting for the end to come, as they descended on him, and the pain began… Blades, fists, feet, anything that could be used to inflict pain was used to batter, slash, and mutilate the young child, whose pitiful cries quickly tore his throat ragged and bloody. He was begging for death by the time the world went dark, and he knew no more.

The blond-haired boy bolted up in from where he lay sleeping, and looked around. The last thing he remembered was an immense pain, and more ninja than he could remember hurting him. As he looked around he saw that he looked like he was in a camp of some kind, and someone was sitting at a fire, with their back to him, and from the look of things, it was nighttime, leaving him to wonder how long he was out, and who this person was. His questions were brought to a screeching halt as he noticed the person get up, and he realized it was a silver-haired, rather androgynous person, maybe 6 or 7 years older than him. The unnamed person turned to him, and smiled warmly, before walking over and sitting down next to him, and beginning to check his bandages, which nearly made him scream before he realized what the person was doing. Once the bandages were checked, the person said in a warm, soft tone, "Hello, I'm Yakushi Kabuto; it's a pleasure to meet you. Me and my sensei found you near-dead a few days ago, and we decided to help you."

Naruto's eyes widened as he heard that this person and their as-of-yet-not-seen sensei had helped him, something no one had done before. He blinked back what felt like tears long enough to say in a choked voice, "Thank you, Kabuto-san. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you." A thought occurred to him, which broke through his normal thoughts, as his curiosity had a tendency to do sometimes, and he said in a curious tone, "Neh, Kabuto-san? This might be a weird question, but you are a guy or a girl?"

Kabuto's mouth dropped open at the extremely blunt question, wondering whether this kid had any manners whatsoever, before giggling lightly, which turned into a full-blown high-pitched laugh as the Kabuto answered in between gales of laughter, "I-I'm, haha, a, ahaha, G-Girl! Ahaha, oh, my ribs!" The now-named female Kabuto recovered from her laughing fit, knowing that the boy would most likely be a bit ashamed of himself, and was proven right as he blushed, squeaking out a "Gomen Kabuto-chan!" The silver-haired girl just smiled and ruffled the young boy's hair, not fazed by the question now that the amusement was passed, saying lightly, "It's nothing Naruto-kun, I get asked that a lot, just not quite so bluntly, hehe. Anyway, I need to check for any internal injuries, so lay back and stay still.

The blond boy nodded and laid back on the bedroll the girl and her sensei had given him, as she held her hands together, a pale green glow enshrouding them as she moved them over his body, checking for any signs of injury that hadn't been taken care of already. Finding none, she allows the glow to fade, saying to the younger child, "You've given us more than a few scares, Naruto-kun. You nearly died more than ten times, it was all we could do to keep you stable. So tell me, how did you get injuries that bad?"

The blonde's eyes fell at that, remembering the vicious mob of ninja, and begins to relate the story quietly, focusing on getting through it quickly and not remembering the pain. Kabuto on the other hand, was getting angrier by the minute. How dare anyone do that to another living being, for any reason! Sure, as a ninja you had to kill, but it didn't mean you had to torture someone just for the sake of doing so. All the more reason to hate Konaha in her eyes, and her shisho would more than likely agree whole-heartedly, even if he would be interested in studying and trying to reproduce the regenerative abilities their blonde guest had shown. She hugged the young boy, pushing him into her chest as she fervently and repeatedly told him that no matter what, she wouldn't let anyone hurt him like that again. The boy hugged her back, nodding, as he said only one thing, "Hai… Arigatou Kabuto-chan…" The two eventually fell asleep on his mat, emotionally exhausted from all that had happened.

Hours later, a man walked slowly into the camp, sitting down next to the fire, and grimacing as he wrapped the wound on his right arm tentatively, not wanting to further damage it. Once that was done, he looked around, and spotted the two laying together on the mat he had provided for the injured boy. A slight smile quirked up one side of his pale face as he sees the boy had recovered, and seemed to have gotten close to the girl he considered the daughter he had never had, although it turned into a frown at the sight of the tears on her face, although the boy she clung desperately to didn't seem to be the source of the trouble. He sighed slightly as he sunk his bloodied longsword into the ground next to him, having decided to track down the blood trail his summons had picked up from where they had found the boy. On finding a large group of ninja from his former village boasting over what they had done to the 'Demon Child' He had realized they had hurt the young child, and when an image of them doing the same to Kabuto had popped into his head, he had attacked them, his snake summons and his Kusanagi ripping into them and through them like a heated katana meeting paper-mache. He had left the village when the Third Hokage had stepped down, only to be replaced by the Yondaime, then officially cut any and all ties when the council took over until a new Hokage could be found, and they immediately began laying laws splitting the power of the old Hokage office almost equally between the council and the Kage, then selected none other than the King of Technique Thieves himself, Fugaku Uchiha, as the new Kage. The other Sannin had also cut ties, but they seemed to be more content to just ignore Konaha then do anything about it, whereas he was trying to find a way to do something. Oh well, maybe the boy might be of some help… He was certainly helping Kabuto, if she was showing real emotions and not hiding behind that damn mask of happiness. Orochimaru Yakushi sighed as he lay down on his own mat, idly making a note to have his daughter check his wound in the morning, as she had learned a fair bit from his old teammate Tsunade during the two months they spent traveling alongside each other.

A/N: Well, This is Kain Doiner here presenting the first chapter of my first fanfic. Please give me some feedback, oh, and this will be a Naru x Harem, with 3 wives, and 2 already chosen by me, so vote in your review for anyone you wanna see. No Konaha people please, aside from Orochimaru being a hell of a lot different and Konaha ending up a hell of a lot worse, most of the alleigences are unchanged, i.e. Kakashi is still a Konaha nin. Gender bending to make the pairing is ok, but no MxM, FxF I can try, but not the other… also, as the final part, these non-Konaha ninja will not be in the pairings:Anyone over 10 years older than Naruto, Temari(overdone),Kin(Plans for that), and Yugito(Plans for that) And the first 5 to vote get double the vote count and a free preview token, which can be cashed at any time for a preview of the next chapter(requires registered account)


	2. Chapter 2

**Oto no Yokai: Sound of the Demon**

_**Part 1, Chapter 2**_

**A Demon's Path: The Teacher**

Naruto blearily opened his eyes, yawned, and tried to sit up, only to find himself trapped in a vice-like grip. For a second, the young blue-eyed boy nearly jumped out of his skin, before remembering what happened the night before. He sees that Kabuto is still asleep, snoring softly as she holds him close, the tight grip belying her feminine appearance. His movement however, caused her to stir, and she sleepily opens her eyes, yawning softly before seeing the young boy she had been taking care of for the past few days is so close to her and sighing softly, pulling him even closer, before realizing this isn't another of those dreams where he wakes up next to her, and then they become friends. She gives out an "Eep!" of embarrassment before pushing Naruto slightly away from her, saying quickly, "Sorry Naruto-kun, I wasn't really all the way awake yet!" Naruto laughs lightly at her reaction, before saying, "No problem Kabuto-chan, it isn't your fault that I happen to be really warm!" Kabuto thanked every god she knew of that the younger child hadn't realized exactly why she pulled him closer, but then again, he was only five, rather than her 10, even though she did look a bit older than she actually was.

A booming laugh filled the clearing as they both turned to see a pale-skinned man with slit-pupil, yellow-irised eyes, and what appeared to be blood-red tattoos around his eyes. Kabuto blushed scarlet as she realizes that her adoptive father/sensei/shisho had just seen her hug the boy, and screeched out at the top of her lungs, in her best impression of a pink-haired woman she had once seen from a distance in a small town nearby, "OTOU-SENSEI!" The man's laughing only increased in response to the girl's actions, getting to the point that he would have been barely standing, were he on his feet, having been awoken by the movement when the boy had first awoken. He finally ran out of steam, panting for breath, having literally laughed out every bit of air he had in his body, before saying, "Gomen Kabuto-chan, but you reminded me so much of my nephew and his wife there for a second. She'd hug him close like that after every mission, damn near broke his back more than a few times, from what he told me and that pervert of a teacher of his over drinks." The last part caused him to sigh, remembering his nephew, his sister's son, who had taken after their side in brains, but his father's in looks, as no Yakushi had blond hair or blue-grey eyes. No they had pale skin, black hair, and either yellow, red, or in some cases dark green eyes. Kabuto nods lightly in response, before jerking him out of it by beginning the introductions.

"Otou-sensei, this is Uzumaki Naruto, the boy we rescued, if you remember. Naruto, this is my Otou-sensei, named for his being my adoptive father, and my teacher." The silver-haired girl said as a way of introduction, before looking to Naruto, who was pale, something the two hadn't noticed because of their conversation. Naruto was staring, wide-eyed at the bloodied longsword, Orochimaru's Kusanagi, and at the wound on his right arm, which looked like a glancing hit from a Fuuton Jutsu had ripped it up pretty badly. Kabuto immediately rushes over to him, ignoring his insistence that it wasn't that bad of a wound and that she didn't need to be so worried about it. Orochimaru turned to the boy and explained while Kabuto tended to the wound, saying as lightly as possible, "I just got this when I tracked the blood leading away from the spot where we found you. A group of what looked like Chuunin with a couple of Jonin and Genin were all bragging about what they did to you, so me and a few of my friends decided to show them that picking on little kids isn't something that a proper ninja should do without a very, very, damn good reason. Naruto sighed in relief as he felt the blood flow in his body pick up again, the sight of the blood on the man's sword and arm reminding him way too much of the incident for comfort. But to hear that this man had hunted the ones who did it down… This guy might actually be kinda nice, almost like the weird ninja in the white masks with the snake symbol and the dog symbol, who fed him, occasionally gave him toys, gave him money to buy food when they didn't have any, and showed him how to hide and run, and the best places to go to. Thinking about them made him sad, since after what happened, he didn't think that he'd be able to go back to Konaha. Misinterpreting the look on the child's face, Orochimaru said, "Don't worry, they were bad people and I had to make sure they wouldn't hurt anyone else." Naruto shook his head and said in a low voice, that only the three of them could hear, and Kabuto had to strain, not having as good hearing as a Sannin-level ninja, "I won't be able to go home anymore, now they'll probably think that I had something to do with them dying and try and kill me for it…" Orochimaru was about to say something, when Naruto's next words triggered something in his mind that nearly made him keel over with the thought of what it might be able to do to put a thorn in the blackened Konahagakure no Sato's side, "I just wish there was a place where people who don't fit in could go, that way we could all be misfits together." Orochimaru's grin threatened to split his face. This was just what he had been waiting for, something that might just let him wrest back the noble Konaha from the corruption it had fallen into. Looking down, he realized that Kabuto had finished her work on his arm, and was now sitting so that the three of them formed a circle.

Orochimaru turns to the young blonde, and says in a serious tone, "Naruto-kun, was it? That may have just given me an idea… Maybe we could start a village for people like the three of us, those who do not fit in and are branded as different, be it from things we are born with, choices we've made, the way we look, or sheer bad luck. I'm almost sure Kabuto would join me in this new village, but what about you? Do you us to drop you off at one of the nearby villages so you can try and have a normal life? Or do you want to come with us, and help to create the thing which your ideas may have helped to set in motion." Kabuto gulped, but looked eagerly to Naruto, hoping against all hope that he said yes, and that he would accompany them, Otou-sensei was wonderful, but even she wanted more than just a father, she wanted a friend who would be there for her, and who she could be there for. Naruto took less than thirty seconds, smirking as he says, "When do we go, and can you start training me too?" Orochimaru grins as Kabuto squeals and hugs her new friend, before Orochimaru stands up, saying, "Let's get packing, Naruto, we'll stop at the next town and get you some proper attire, ninja supplies, and your own camping gear, although I don't have enough on me for an extra futon on top of everything else you'll need, so for now you'll be sharing with Kabuto. Kabuto blushes and glares lightly at the man, who just grins before beginning to wipe his blade, his gear already stored as he had been too tired to pull it out the night before. Naruto helps Kabuto pack, and soon the trio are on their way, stopping in the nearby town of Tanzaku, where they purchased a full set of ninja gear, along with practical, formal, and combat wear for their new addition, as well as a set of practice swords, ranging from a half-foot dagger, to just under the size of a Zanbatou, as it was a full set. Orochimaru insisted on it, to the puzzlement of Naruto, until he told him that while the Snake Sannin was easily-Jonin-rank in his Taijutsu, his true close-combat skill was Kenjutsu, and he fully intended to instruct him in both, which wasn't something he could do with out a practice weapon. They also purchased more than a few of the repair and refurbish kits, as well as ninja mesh undershirts for all of them, Orochimaru's one having been destroyed by a lucky hit from one of the Jonin the night before. Afterwards, they headed towards Kusa no Kuni, a small land on the borders of Hi no Kuni, and a place where Orochimaru had more than a few people who owed him favors, and could easily get a small base, made for about a hundred to a hundred and fifty, in little to no time, as they had a fair number of Doton specialists who could hew something like that from a mountain in two or three days. And so began the rise of Oto.

A/N: And so we have the beginning of Oto, the centerpiece of our little tale. Also starting this chapter, I'll be having a list of terms and later a list of Jutsu, seeing as I'm releasing this almost right after Chapter 1, everything there applies. Kain, signing off. Ciao!

Terms:

Oto-Sound

Konaha-Leaf

Kusa-Grass

Hi-Fire

Gakure no Sato-The Village of _

No Kuni-The Land of _

Fuuton-Wind Release/Wind Style

Doton-Earth Release/Earth Style

Taijutsu-Martial Techniques

Kenjutsu-Blade Techniques

Genin-Rookie Ninja

Chuunin-Journeyman Ninja

Jonin-Elite Ninja

Sannin-Sage Ninja

Kage-Shadow

Hokage-Fire Shadow

-kun: A suffix used to refer to a male who you feel affection for, although what the level of that affection is can vary, i.e. parent-to-son or girlfriend-to-boyfriend.

-chan: A suffix used to refer to a female who you feel affection for, although what the level of that affection is can vary, i.e. parent-to-daughter or boyfriend-to-girlfriend.

-san: A suffix used to refer to someone formally, and is gender-neutral, closest translation would probably be mister or miss, but is applied all the time, unlike those two(And I hate when dubbing screws that up… Please Twins is a perfect example.)


	3. Chapter 3

**Yokai no Oto: Sound of the Demon**

_**Part 1, Chapter 3**_

**A Demon's Path: The Rival's Way**

Foreword:

Review Responses:

Irnzenmonk:Thanks, I'm glad that you like it.

dark knight:Ok, Tayuya, and I think that's supposed to be Jinchuuriki… Sadly Konan will not be in the harem as she is over 10 years older than Naruto, which is one of the disqualifiers… Sorry.

Charon:Thanks for pointing out my error, Japanese is my second language, and I still get more than a bit mixed up… Also, I'm sorry you're not a harem-fan, I'm only one myself if there's a reason and good buildup to it.

Tstoldt:I'm glad that you think it's cool,Mei, Fem Kyu, and Anko will not be in the Harem, Tayuya is one of the two spots I had picked out.

The young raven-haired boy wandered aimlessly through the streets, as the people either nodded respectfully, bowed slightly, or even bowed to the ground, depending on their social status, to him as he walked around the village. He had nothing to do, and the blonde boy Naruto, who he had played with a few times and who he had promised to be blood brothers with one day, was missing, with nothing to distract him from it, he found the boy's departure saddening, as he was the one person who acted like he was just himself rather than the son of the Uchiha Clan Head and Godiame Hokage Uchiha Fugaku. His name was Uchiha Sasuke, youngest of the Clan Head's three children, his onii-san and onee-chan being the infamous Prodigal Twins of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Itachi and Itome. They were away on a mission at the moment, so he couldn't bug them to help him work on his Shuriken Jutsu that he had been working on for the past few months. He sighed as he wondered if there was anything he would be able to do today.

A pair of forms sped through the trees, moving incredibly fast, enough so that if not for their Kekkai Genkai they would be experiencing a severe case of tunnel vision. The shorter of the two, only about three inches or so turns to her companion, as she gripes, "Urgh! That mission was a pain in the ass! Not to mention now we have to tell Otou-san that we found that group of ninja he sent us out to find in pieces! Sheesh, this is just not our day, is it Tachi-Nii?" The taller dark-haired prodigy glares lightly at his twin sister, the other Uchiha born only twenty minutes after himself. The female ANBU Captain giggles at her brother's annoyance, she knew her antics got under his skin, but it also kept him in contact with his emotions, and helped him wind down from a mission, effectively disengaging his Shinobi side. The pair were both technically ranked ANBU Captains, but worked almost exclusively with each other, as they worked better in tandem than with a full squad of four, as the two extras threw off their honed teamwork, which had reached the point that they didn't have to look to know what the other would do. Even their natures complimented and supported each other, him possessing a Wind and Water nature, and her possessing a Fire and Lightning nature. In fact, they had invented close to half a dozen special tandem justu using their chakra natures to support and enhance each other, like their Ninpo: Bureizu no Arashi and Ninpo: Genzai no Sanda Hakei.

The silence between the two was tense, because they had a feeling that this news would be what would make or break their idea to go missing-nin. If their father took out his rage on them, or seemed like he would do so on Sasuke, like he often did, they planned to grab the younger Uchiha and enough food and supplies for a few weeks, then get out fast. That was the plan at any rate, but as plans never survived contact with the enemy, it might just need to be adjusted. Luckily, they did have a few contacts that had some sympathy for them and a few others who they had gotten blackmail on during their time as ANBU. Of course, there was still the possibility that their father wouldn't do so, which would show that their fears that his Mangekyou Sharingan was driving him mad would be appeased, but still…. They had to be sure that staying would be the better option, as they had made a vow to their mother as she lay near death to protect their little brother at all costs, and had sworn by their Sharingans to do so, an oath that the Kekkai Genkai took seriously, as when someone swore by it, then failed to uphold their oath, it destroyed their eyes, leaving them eternally blind. Even without the extra incentive, they cared for their younger brother, and would do almost anything for him, when they were able to.

The two arrived, speeding past the village gates, and leaping from rooftop to rooftop to reach their father quickly, knowing that the news of an entire group of over forty ninja turning up dead was something that he would need to know. The twins quickly reached the onyx-black tower with the white-and-red fan of the Uchiha emblazoned on it, arriving and signaling to his assistant that it was urgent, causing her to step out of the way and allow the two to pass. Fugaku, the second-most powerful ninja in all of Konahagakure, only missing out on the number one spot due to the powerful Danzo, the commander of the ANBU ROOT division, looked up to see his eldest children barge into his office, the looks on their faces showing that this was a lot more than just a random pleasure call. Itome only had to say one sentence to confirm the village leader's suspicions, "The missing group that vanished after the mob… We found them, just like you ordered… Or what's left of them, I should say. From the looks of it, they were hit hard and fast by an elite group, ANBU-level at least, seeing as how Kanou Shou was with the group, and he was one of our best Jonin." The Uchiha patriarch began to swear in ever more colorful terms as he vented a portion of his rage over the equivalent of four complete graduations worth of Chuunin, as well as two Jonin and a few promising Genin. This wouldn't set Konaha back all that much, but Jonin and Chuunin weren't as easy to replace as Genin were, as Jonin tended to take at least a year or more after gaining Chuunin to hit the level necessary for the rank. This would push back the invasion plans by at least a few months, if not more, seeing as Kanou Shou was, with the exception of Maito Gai, the single best Taijutsu practitioner in all of Konaha, and only less than the spandex-wearing Jonin because he was unable to release his chakra gates as a part of his Kekkai Genkai, Sei no Dou, which allowed him to use both positive and negative chakra at once, delimiting his body and allowing him to fight on a level almost on par with that of a Kage, whereas the Green Beast with his chakra gates release, could surpass almost any Kage in terms of Taijutsu power. With him gone, he was suddenly missing a powerful resource which he had hoped to be able to draw on in the coming invasion. He needed to vent, and he knew just the target, his youngest, least brilliant, weakest, and in his opinion, failure of a child, Sasuke. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the twins, unaware that they had seen the tell-tale clues in his demeanor which pointed toward him being prepared to take out his rage on someone, and knowing that Sasuke was his favorite punching bag, the two dashed home, whispering to each other what they needed to bring and what supplies they should get. They found Sasuke sleeping on the tatami mats of the living room, having been so bored that he had fallen asleep after coming home. Itome rushed upstairs and hurriedly grabbed clothes for herself, Itachi, and Sasuke, sealing them in a storage scroll, while Itachi did the same with food, weapons, and basic camping and survival gear.

The sound of their preparations reached the youngest child of the Uchiha main household, causing the roughly five-year-old boy to yawn as he sat up, rubbing his eyes in an attempt to get the sleep out. He peered around through half-asleep eyes, before waking fully up at the sight of his older siblings rushing around, grabbing supplies and the like. Itome, who had just finished getting the clothes, noticed Sasuke was awake, and walked quickly over to him, kneeling down next to her younger brother, and whispering urgently, "Sasuke, something's happened, and you, me, and your onii-san are going to have to get out of the village for a while, do you understand?" The child nods, remembering Itachi's lesson on stealth, and knowing that if he was not quiet, he would give away their position. The eldest of the trio came back with the items he had retrieved, and with a signal to Itome, the three set out, Sasuke riding on the back of the elder of the two. The three left the village quickly and stealthily, their disappearance not noticed until later that day. Hunter-nin were after them as soon as the news was out, the Prodigal Twins were added into the bingo book as A-rank criminals, with a Kill-on-Sight order. And so the rival of the hero began his own journey down his path.

A/N:I'm sorry I'm so late getting this out… RL is a major bitch, neh? Hopefully the updates will be more regular now, and also, today we add in the Jutsu List!

Jutsu/Technique List:

Ninpo: Bureizu no Arashi-Ninja Art:Storm of the Blaze-A combination Ninjutsu combining Itachi and Itome's Fire and Wind Chakra natures to create a massive blazing whirlwind, laced with wind blades.

Ninpo: Genzai no Sanda Hakei—Ninja Art: Thunder Wave Current-A combination Ninjutsu where Itachi and Itome combine their Water and Lightning natures to create an immense torrent of water, that is then filled with Lightning-based Chakra, electrifying any caught within.

Terms List:

Onii-chan-A term used for an older brother. Sometimes shortened to Nii.

Onee-chan:A term used for an older sister. Sometimes shortened to Nee.


	4. Chapter 4

**Yokai no Oto: Sound of the Demon**

_**Part 1, Chapter 4**_

**A Demon's Path: The Bone Manipulator**

Review Responses:

Tstoldt:Ok, Fem Kimi counted, Don't know enough about Samui to say anything there(after the disappointment of the battle on the bridge after all that filler… I just stopped watching or reading, so pretty much anything after that, aside from a few characters that may or may not pop up, will be completely and totally ignored, as from what I hear Idimoto screwed his own series up so bad that it makes me wonder if he knows Tite Kubo on a social level.) And NO KONAHA PEOPLE! I said this three times now…

USAVet:Nice name, and also I'm glad you find it interesting, most people I know aren't very supportive of my writing, and the idea behind this, so this shows me that I wasn't a complete idiot in writing this. Also, don't worry, I'm having fun with this, especially with what I have in mind.

Lazy Eyes Conway:… wat? Nanabi? What is this you speak of? *checks book, Encyclopedia for Narutards* OH!... No, just no… I will not be using that thing as one of my tailed beasts, in fact 1, 2, 3, maybe 4, 8, and 9 are all that will be staying the same, and 8 may be subject to change… Sorry… But Bakamoto's Bijuu are fucked up, I could possibly have her be with Sasuke and be the Jinchuuriki of the new beast…

Dark Knight:Thanks, and don't worry, This will not end for some time. This is planned to be of epic length, as in 3 or more parts of over 150k words each… It just may take me a while to do that.

Hooked reader:Yeah, I make a few mistakes I don't catch, and I'm still working on getting a good beta reader, which should help. Karui and Samui, I have no clue who are, and I'll count that as a vote for Yukie.

Orochimaru sighed as he looked out over the dismal Kusagakure no Sato, which had fallen in glory and skill since the days after the last ninja war. The Shinobi of the village used to be feared across the land, and spoken of in whispers as master assassins; now, they sat around small fires most days after a small bit of training, their great village brought low by the surprise attack by the Uchiha Clan after the war's end. Still, he knew of a contact that would be able to find a Doton specialist with the skill to make what he was looking for, and more than likely, the more noble and less cowardly of the ninja here would join his new village, once word of it got around, although he planned to make sure that it was not publicly known that he was the leader of the as-of-yet-unnamed village. Otherwise, they would be unlikely to ever get the village situated, as Konaha hunted him whenever word of his whereabouts reached them. You don't let an SS-class ninja with more Kinjutsu, Ninjutsu, Kenjutsu, and Genjutsu skills then an entire battalion of Black Ops Anbu run around without taking at least some measures to bring the man down, even if you knew that when pressed the man could bring out snakes larger than most small towns within seconds. He sighed as he said to the two children, "You two go find something to do, I have a person I need to see about getting us a place to live." The young boy and his new friend both gave out a shout of "Hai!" before running off to see if they could find someone to play with for Naruto, and someone to talk to for Kabuto.

The Snake Sennin smirked as he watched the pair run off, before heading to a small, seemingly abandoned hut, tapping in a certain pattern on the door before deactivating the outer defense seals and walking in. He needed to see Gongo Shiriji about any Doton specialists with the required skills, as well as any bloodline orphans and the like who would make good soldiers with a bit of training, as he needed a starting force to work with, preferably non-mercenaries as mercenaries always went to the guy with the most cash. Meanwhile, the younger of the two children had accidentally run into someone, a white-haired girl about a year or two older than himself.

The girl in question was knocked over, before pushing him off of herself, saying softly to the young blonde ,"Watch where you're going…" She then is about to leave when Naruto grabs her hand, and says, "Wait! I'm sorry for running into you! Is there any way I can make it up to you?" The girl thinks for a second, before a small smile crosses her features and she says in the same soft tone, "You could play with me for a while… Most people don't wanna play with me cause they say I'm a freak of nature… But since you ran into me, it's only fair you gotta play with me." Kabuto had caught up by this point, but had decided to stay back, smirking lightly as she saw Naruto interact with the young girl, before following the pair as Naruto exuberantly agreed to play with the pale, white-haired child, who lead them to a small, run-down playground where there was only a handful of children, a sign of the hard times and losses the village had been suffering from. The two young children ran to the swings, the pale one crying out to the blonde, tanned one," Push me!" Naruto laughed as he pushed the slightly older child on the swing, causing her to sail through the air, squealing in delight, her normal barriers gone as she enjoyed life for the first time in her life, the blonde sharing her feelings as they basked in the simple joy of being with a new friend. Kabuto watched from a distance, noting how both seemed to enjoy the time with one another, and form the way the young girl was before, as well as the twin red dots on her forehead as a marking, the girl seemed to a bloodline carrier in the process of being weaponized by the ninja of Kusagakure. She sighed as she decided that they would more than likely need to bring the girl with them, as she would be a valuable ally with time, on top of saving her from the horrible process of weaponization, something she wouldn't wish on her very worse enemies, as it removed everything that made that person who they were. The two children continued to play, becoming closer emotionally, as neither one had ever had someone to play with, both being ostracized by their villages.

An odd man walked slowly into the village, his orange spiky hair, multiple piercings, and odd eyes screaming at anyone who looked at him to run and hide. He was there for a single purpose, to find the Jinchuuriki this village had among their number, if his senses of that foul chakra were correct. Normally, he wouldn't do this himself, but seeing as how his spies had reported the infamous Hebi Sennin Orochimaru of the Dentetsu no Sannin entering the village, he couldn't afford to send in someone who would more than likely end up dead. Relying on his sensor abilities, he swiftly made his way to a small park near the center of the village, and was surprised to find that the chakra he had been sensing was coming from a blonde haired child playing with what he believed to be a remnant of the Kaguya clan, if his readings of her clan markings were right. Still, he would get the brat, young or not. Hopefully, he could get out without making a scene. Unfortunately, Kabuto recognized him from her foster father's bingo book, as the black-and-red robes his organization wore were infamous in certain circles, and she immediately went to get him, knowing that she stood no chance. As the Rinnegan-bearing ninja contemplated how to convince the boy to leave with him, he heard a slight,"Ahem!" On turning, he paled, seeing none other than Orochimaru behind him, and not looking too pleased, flanked by Gongo Shiriji, an A-Class ninja who had made a name for himself as a stealth expert and assassin in the last war, and the current leader of Kusagakure, his battle scythe in one hand. The Rinnegan user acted quickly, slamming a smoke bomb down to cover his use of a reverse summoning technique to vanish.

A/N:It's crap…. I'm suffering from writer's block at the moment, am swamped by Christmas stuff, my job, and was sick for a week… Feel free to flame me for the crappy writing and shitty way of introducing Akatsuki, I'm trying to get them into the main part of the story at the moment, and until then I have all but run out of ideas on what to do… T.T My writing is horrible…


	5. Chapter 5

**Yokai no Oto: Sound of the Demon**

_Part 1, Chapter 5_

A Demon's Path: The Journey's True First Steps

Review Responses:

Ryanshadow19:Thanks for the compliment, and I've decided to redo my writing process, which should increase speed, add some semblance of order to these uploads, and should drastically increase chapter size. So you'll get your wish for reading more.

TigrezzTail:The main reason I was struggling was lack of a beta, as well as trying to force myself to write in order to not feel like I was letting you guys down. That has now been cleared up, due to me being diagnosed with ADD, and getting medicine that helps me to focus, which will allow me to write much better. Also, the original idea came to me from seeing the large amount of fics where Naruto would join Oto, only to be manipulated by Orochimaru. I didn't like that, but the only way to fix it is to alter Orochimaru at such an insane level, I had to go back and change the entire line of Naruto pretty much. Most people are heavily influenced by what happens around them. Canon Orochimaru was influenced by Konaha's peacefulness in a very bad way, becoming the warped and twisted individual most now see him as. Yokai no Oto Orochimaru saw Konaha's corruption, and utter evil, and was life-changingly altered by it. The two Orochimarus have only a few similarities, and more differences than I can name, for instance, Yokai no Oto Orochimaru doesn't have Canon Orochimaru insane resistance to damage, but as a bit of a trade-off, has more powerful offensive Ninjutsu, as well as his own Hebi Senjutsu, which is removed from and different than the Gama Senjutsu Jiriaya and Canon Naruto made famous. And this somehow turned into a bit of a rant, so on to the next review…

Dayfox96:The reason Pein fled will be revealed in this chapter, but is totally based on canon knowledge… Pein was willing to sacrifice a body to protect his Deva Path in canon, and I'm willing to bet that he wouldn't be willing to risk having a 2-on-1 battle against a lower-Kage-level ninja, and a full-on-Kage-level-without-counting-Hebi-Senjutsu ninja. As I say in this chapter, Pein would most likely kill/fatally wound one of the two, but his Deva Path would be taken out in the process.

Adrigo714:I made the text bigger this time around in hopes to fix the problem, let me know if there's still an issue. Also, as I've said before, Naruto will not be with anyone from Konaha, this is a done deal, and as the author of this story I have the final say-so. If this is a problem for anyone, please feel free to press your browser's back button one or more times, depending on whether you skipped to this chapter or not.

Honorwolf1:As I've said before, the main reason I wasn't satisfied is because my muse was not working with me on that chapter… Also, I don't really know that much about Shion, so I'll need to look her up before I do anything about that.

Author's Note:Due to the suggestions of my muse…*looks at muse, who seems to be a cross of Subaru Kujo and Rikaritta Aries from Sakura Wars:So Long, My Love, and who has a small kodachi. She is slowly drawing in order to… Discuss how the story should go with me.* I will be expanding the initial harem of 3 to an indefinite number… So pretty much almost all the suggestions will be included somehow, although whether they are major or minor, and whether they feature in the harem will be left up to my muse… She's the one who really writes this story… Also, the current harem is Tayuya(my friend's choice)/Fem Kabuto(My Choice)/Fem Gaara(Poll leader by a full 4)/Fem Kimi(tied for second/Muse's insistence)/Guren(same as Fem Kimi)/Iwa OC(Muse's insistence/begging/whining at me until I agreed.) Also, from now on, I will not be translating the techniques unless I already know what they mean/can find an easy translation.

Pein appeared on top of a building in Amegakure, his Beast Path on his knees before his with his hands against the ground. He had not anticipated not just one, but two Kage-level ninja being there. Gongo Shiriji, the Deadly Shadow of Kusagakure, and Orochimaru Yakushi, who was the Snake Sage in addition to being a member of the Dentetsu no Sannin, the Legendary Three Sage Ninja. He had not expected them, and so had sent his Deva Path alone. While it could have defeated one of them, for certain, it would've been rendered unusable by doing so. He did not make false assumptions about his own power, and Orochimaru was not a man to underestimate, having mastered Hebi Senjutsu, as well as having attained mastery in all five central elements, and was believed to be working on a new level of Fuuton Jutsu. He had tom mobilize immediately if he wanted the Kyuubi.

-Scene Shift-

Orochimaru and Shiriji, as well as most of the more elite ninjas, and Naruto, Kabuto, and his new friend Kimimaro, sat in the Council Room, as Orochimaru laid out his plan, as well as the reasons why it was a good idea, "With ninja of that caliber aiming here as Naruto's last known location, you would be destroyed in short order. As it stands you must leave, or die. If you leave with me, I can help you get back on your feet, and in return, you can help me to create a place where life's outcasts are accepted. It's your choice." Shiriji nodded gravely as he voiced his own opinion, "I may not like it, but your words have truth in them, my old friend." Other ninja threw their approval on top of his, as seeing their appointed leader choose to accept this proposal had emboldened them to do the same. Naruto grinned, an action mirrored by the others, knowing that the preparations for the move to the nearby mountains would soon begin.

-Time skip, 2 weeks later, in the newly established Otogakure no Sato base-

Orochimaru glared at the pile of paper and ink before him; ever since accepting the position of Kage of the newly-christened Otogakure, he had nothing but stack after stack of paperwork to get everything they needed set up, the current pile being what was necessary to establish them as a Hidden Village in the eyes of the Daimyo. Even using Kage Bunshins to help just barely allowed him to keep up. He noticed the time and smirked, leaving while making a Kage Bunshin to take his place at the desk. It was time to continue Naruto-kun's training in Kenjutsu.

Naruto roared a battle cry as he brought his practice blade down, only to have it effortlessly parried by a saber made of bone. Kimimaro gave a playful grin as she swiped at him with her sword, Naruto barely blocking it, and being knocked off-balance to do so. Naruto had turned out to be a very quick learner when it came to Kenjutsu, soaking up knowledge like a sponge, but he still had a long way to go, as his muscles still had to be built up, and his body had to be able to fight without his constant focus, meaning he had to master Kenjutsu and its katas until they became a reflex. As it stood though, it wouldn't be long until he was Genin-level, and with diligent training, possibly Chuunin-level within a few months. Every day for the past two week, he had trained until he couldn't move, then forced himself up and continued to train through sheer willpower, his desire to reach his goal overcoming his body's desires. His one goal was to become even stronger than Otou-sensei, so that he could protect him, and all of his precious people, and even if it took almost killing himself with training to do it, he was gonna reach his goal someday, dattebayo!

Kabuto and her adopted father watched the young Jinchuuriki as he sparred with all of his skill against the one-girl-Kenjutsu-wrecking-team known as Kimimaro Kaguya. His weapon, a dulled metal odachi, was pockmarked with cracks and areas where the edge looked serrated from where the Kaguya's bone sword had cut into, and nearly shattered the blade from the force. Her blade was harder than steel, a sign of her natural skill with her Kekkai Genkai. The girl wore grey robes tied with a belt made from a deep-red cloth, a carry over from Kusagakure that many of the ninja of Oto ninja now wore. Naruto, on the other hand, wore a deep blue jacket with a red swirl-like symbol on the chest, while beneath it, he wore a ninja mesh shirt, and a pair of pants lined with chakra-reinforced metal. It was a far cry from his previous outfit, and one which Kabuto and Orochimaru had convinced to accept only by say it would help him as a ninja. Orochimaru walked out onto the training field, stopping the sparring match instantly. Turning to them, he smiled, while saying, "Well done. You two, in only a few weeks, have come far, especially you Naruto-kun. Now, it's time for you to learn more about a ninja's greatest art… Ninjutsu. Naruto, you will be starting with the basic leaf floating exercise. Kimimaro, you will be learning the wall-walking exercise. Naruto, take this leaf and place it on your palm, then focus your chakra to make it float over your palm. Be careful not to use too much, or you'll shred it. Kimimaro-chan, focus your chakra to the soles of your feet, then attempt to us it to stick to the wall. Don't use too much, or you'll blast yourself off the wall, use too little, and you won't stick." He then handed a leaf to Naruto, who attempts to make it float, only to instantly shred it to pieces. Orochimaru sighs at this, knowing that it would take a lot of training for Naruto to get his chakra control to the point where it wouldn't overpower any Jutsu he used.

-Time Skip, 2 years later, Otogakure Stronghold Training Room-

The sounds of steel meeting bone resounded throughout the room as Naruto and Kimimaro met and disengaged repeatedly, appearing to almost be dancing an intricate dance with death. Naruto was now capable of keeping up with Kimimaro, evening the playing field and keeping her from being able to overwhelm him with raw power and speed as she had been able to before. He was still not as good at Kenjutsu as the pale, white-haired Kaguya prodigy, but the gap was slowly closing between his level of power and skill, and her level of power and skill within the area of Kenjutsu. When it came to Taijutsu, his abilities were sub-par at the very best, barely rating low-Genin, where hers were in the area of mid-Chuunin. His Ninjutsu abilities were truly incredible though, already at low-to-mid Jonin, which in a 7-year-old child was only heard of in the rarest of cases. Unless you were a Jinchuuriki with chakra to burn, and a willing teacher who was hailed as one of the greatest masters of Ninjutsu in history. Naruto could now use a total of 15 Ninjutsu: The Academy Three, which he could now use almost instantly, and without handseals; His Kage Bunshin, which now only needed one half-seal and only the barest minimum of forewarning; a small assortment of 5 Fuuton Jutsu, including Fuuton: Ripping Winds, Fuuton: Vacuum Void, Fuuton: Daitoppa, Fuuton: Pressure Damage, and Fuuton: Devastation; two Suiton Jutsus, which they had found to be his second element, which were Suiton: Suiheki and Suiton: Mizukibadan; and finally, his prized Ototon Jutsus, created by his adoptive father/teacher as an advancement to Fuuton. In order to use two of them, he had to use special gauntlets known by the R&D boys as Melody Arms, and for the other two had had to under go surgery that placed wind pipes into his arms. The surgeries were experimental, and he had volunteered to be the first due to his natural healing factor allowing them to test it on a subject that would be exceptionally hard to kill.

Naruto was dragged back to the present by Kimimaro smacking him upside the head with the flat of her blade. With a growl, he launched into a blinding flurry of attacks, using all of his high Chuunin-level Kenjutsu skill, but to the mid Jonin-level prodigy, his attacks were fairly easy to dodge. Noticing a flaw in his stance, she dashed in and knocked aside his sword, before flicking hers up to his throat. With a small smirk, she dug it into his skin a little, before saying, "That makes it 16-2 for today Naruto-kun…. Do you need a break to nurse your wounded pride?" The joke was delivered with her usual calm tone, which somehow seemed both caring and cold at the same time. Naruto blushed slightly at her, the 10-year-old girl laughing slightly at the sight. It was well-known to the older ninja that the two had a crush on each other, as obvious as the one he also had for Kabuto, which was mutual as well.

A soft sigh got their attention, as Kabuto walked up to them, admonishing, "Kimimaro-imoto… You know you're not supposed to injure him on days we might go on missions. Otou-sensei has something for us, a C-rank this time. We're going to be escorting a bridge builder home." The two immediately separated, Naruto going to his gear by the wall, switching out his practice Zanbatou, the weapon he was currently working on mastering, for his trusty twin odachi. Once so equipped, they headed towards the Otokage's office, which was in the sturdiest and best-defended area.

Upon arriving, they saw Orochimaru giving his final orders to Shiriji, who took his place as Kage when ever he was away on a mission. Turning back to his students and Genin team, he spoke quickly and efficiently, like a true ninja, "Out client will be meeting us at our Southern Outpost, seeing as he contacted us through out only public outpost. We move out now." The Genins nodded, knowing that this C-rank mission presented them a chance to prove themselves. Kabuto and Kimimaro disappeared for a moment to grab the traveling bags they kept on standby in a closet in the office. They then set out on the 4-hour journey to the Southern Outpost, led by a man known as Shiron of the South Gate.

-Scene Shift, Southern Outpost-

Orochimaru and the young Genins arrived at the Southern Outpost, where they were met by Shiron, as well as a group of 3 Jonin and 2 Chuunin, a basic guard in the absence of the ANBU Corps, the first of which were still undergoing training, and who would be ready in about 2 years. Shiron bowed respectfully to Orochimaru, knowing him by his reputation even if he was currently disguised, his skin now more tanned, his facial structure modified slightly to become even more lean, his eyes now a dark green, and lacking the slitted pupils marking him as a Hebi Sennin. He had also placed limiter seals on himself, restricting him to only Upper Jonin-level chakra and skill. Naruto was also under and illusion that hid his slightly-slitted pupils, as well as his whisker marks, changed his eyes to a deep red-brown, similar to the color of dried blood, as well as changing his hair to a slightly more red shade, now appearing crimson, and making him appear to be 4'9". Kimimaro's illusion had tanned skin, hid her forehead clan marks, and gave her black hair. As a ninja that had yet to make any real waves for her origins or skills, Kabuto's only difference was in the body armor she wore to protect herself in case she was drawn into combat, as well as three additional pouches on her belt, and her traveling pack.

After Shiron guided them into the meeting room, they saw that their client was a very tanned man, with a rope tying his hair back, and multiple scars, apparently from his work, on his arms and hands. As he sees the group, he frowns, before saying scathingly, "I paid for a team of ninja to protect me, and I get two girlies, an older-looking faggot, and a kid who looks like he needs to go suckle from mommy. Are you sure I'm getting what I paid for!" Suddenly, the three Genin were gone from his sight, and instead he had two swords at his throat and a chakra scalpel in front of his face. The man shut up, as they went back to standing behind to the left of Orochimaru, as the Sannin says, "Well Tazuna-san, my team is the most elite Genin team in all of Otogakure, which focuses on personal excellence for all our ninja. Not to mention, I am Sunsori Takeba, third-in-command and one of the top ten members of Oto. My team consists of Shinjiro Taiga, Sagitta Aries, and Subaru Kujo, Shinjiro is the boy with the odd eyes and the twin odachi, Sagitta is the girl with the swords made from bones, and finally Subaru is the rather androgynous girl with the medical skills. Rest assured, we will protect you, even if one of us has to give our lives. Oto is founded on the principle of leaving no one behind, and even if you're hurt, Subaru should be able to heal you, unless it's instantly lethal."

This reassured Tazuna, and so the five of them set out for the man's home country, Nami no Kuni, which was relatively famous for being a trade center. It was also known as a place where Samurai used to be trained, even boasting the strongest Samurai in history, such as Oda Nobunaga, a powerful Samurai who fought the Shodaime Mizukage to a near-draw, the Shodaime only winning by the timely awakening of his sword's, Hyorinmaru, true form and power, allowing him to gain the edge needed to defeat Nobunaga. At first it appeared to be a peaceful trip, with a few bandits here and there, easily dispatched by the three Genin. However, after passing into Hi no Kuni, the group ran into trouble.

The group was now only two days from the boat that would take them to Nami no Kuni. However, the four ninja noticed something off, as in spite of the noticeable lack of rain, there was a rather large puddle on the side of the road. Orochimaru immediately recognized it as the Water Hiding Jutsu, a Kiri-nin-original technique that allowed someone to dissolve into water. It was originally developed in order to allow sneak attacks in the perpetually watery regions of Mizu no Kuni. Orochimaru seallessly created a Mud Clone in the thicket nearby, then seallessly, smokelessly Kawarimied with it. He then sat back to watch how his students performed in a true battle, a life-or-death situation.

Meizu and Gozu slowly returned to their normal, physical forms after the team of Oto shinobi went by, knowing that they had to take out the Jonin first. They brought their bladed chain, which connected their clawed gauntlets to each other, around the older ninja, before yanking the chain, causing it to rip into him, cutting the ninja into small pieces. However, their chain was almost immediately split by a hand glowing a light blue, Kabuto's powerful Chakra Scalpel cutting through the un-reinforced metal like butter. Meanwhile, Naruto had drawn one of his two odachi, and had closed with Meizu, the younger of the two brothers, while Kimimaro had chosen to engage the older brother, Gozu, in close combat.

-With Naruto-

Naruto bellowed a battle cry as he swung his blade in a diagonal arc meant to cut the Kiri nukenin in two. Meizu blocked with the side of his gauntlet, before attempting to drive his gauntleted hand into the young blonde's chest, only for the blonde-turned-redhead to block the attack with his own gauntlet, the Genin grinning as he used his Ototon: Reverberating Distortion, which used the vibrations caused by the impact to cause damage to the nerves of the person touching the Melody Arm besides the user. Meizu felt his arm go numb and jumped back, holding the affected limb for a moment, before his eyes widened as the redhead approaches the Chuunin-level nukenin. As Meizu stared in horror, he swung his blade towards the ex-Kiri ninja's neck. Unable to block with a numb arm, and his reflexes dulled by the same technique, Meizu could only close his eyes and hope his Nii-san could avenge him.

-With Kimimaro, same time as Naruto's Fight-

Kimimaro blocked Gozu's frenzied attacks, the older brother the more skilled, and with better equipment, as his gauntlet couldn't be cut by the young Kaguya's weapon. Kimimaro growled at this fact, but grinned lightly as Gozu faltered for a moment. Seizing her chance, Kimimaro began to launch a frenzied series of attacks, Gozu's blocks becoming more and more desperate as she pressed him. Finally seeing an opening, Kimimaro focused her chakra into the fingertips of her off hand. She grinned as she said in a small voice, "Digital Shrapnel." The bones of her fingertips fired off at the nukenin, piercing him through the chest multiple times. As Gozu looked down, seeing the mortal wounds, and knowing that even with immediate medical attention he would've been hard-pressed to survive, and so as the pain hit, he could barely make out the girl's sword coming at his head, and grinned ruefully as he thought, "Well, I had a good run of it, shame we didn't get to fulfill our dream."

As the two finished removing the heads, they returned to the group, to the sound of applause from Orochimaru as he stepped from the thicket where he had been observing the fight. He praised them, while also judging their skills, making sure to use their aliases, "Subaru, good job on cutting the chain as soon as the battle started, it helped your teammates to separate the enemies, and engage them alone. Shinjiro, great job with your fight, excellent use of the Melody Arm's ability to allow you to both attack and defend at the same time. Sagitta, good job keep your enemy pressed, as well as tricking him into thinking your blade was your only mode of attack. Now, Subaru, you need to improve on the range of your Chakra Scalpel, as you needed to get much too close to cut the chain, had that been a more skilled set of opponents, they could taken you out while you were overextended. Shinjiro, you need to work on the power of your Melody Arm, most Jonin could've shrugged that off as easily as surging their chakra; you also need to work on your Kenjutsu skills, as your opponent's superior strength allowed him to knock aside most of your attacks. Sagitta, you need to work on the speed and power of your Digital Shrapnel. It was entirely too slow for anyone above mid-Chuunin, which was these two's level." Ending his teaching moment, Orochimaru took the head of Gozu and used a technique he had picked up during his stay with the Konaha Interrogation and Torture Division, the Dead Mind Walking Jutsu, which allowed a person to gain the most recent memories of the freshly dead, how far back determined by ones skill.

Orochimaru now employed it on Gozu, his skill with this technique incredible even when limited by the limiter seals. He watched a memory in which Gozu received his orders from Zabuza, as well as when he discussed the reasons for the mission with Meizu. The memories confirmed that they had been hired by Gato for the purpose of taking out Tazuna. Ending the technique, Orochimaru returned the head to Kimimaro, who sealed it into a scroll as Naruto had with Meizu's, and turned to Tazuna. Seeing the older man sweating nervously, Orochimaru spoke in an almost light tone, "You lied about the mission, Tazuna-san. You knew that there were ninja hired to kill you, but given what my sources tell me, I can understand why…. However, it will be up to my students whether or not we continue this mission." The bridge builder's jaw dropped, although he quickly turned to the Genin, who were quickly and quietly informed by Orochimaru about the bad economical situation, and how Gato had abused it to take control of all of Nami no Kuni's wealth, and how he was using it to abuse people. Naruto growled upon receiving the information, an action mirrored to a lesser degree by both Kimimaro and Kabuto, before all three enthusiastically agreed to continue the mission. Orochimaru insisted, as they started to head towards the boat they would take to Nami no Kuni to help take down a tyrant, that Tazuna and Nami pay for the mission's full price over time, when the nation got back on its feet.

-Within Nami no Kuni's Forest-

Zabuza Momochi, Akaoni no Kirigakure, stared indifferently at the short man in an expensive suit before him, who was ranting about how the Demon Brothers had failed. He ignored the man until he questioned Zabuza's skill, and threatened to withhold payment. Zabuza lifted his sword, the Kubikiri Hochi, which was more akin to a slab of steel with a sharpened edge than a true sword, and placed the point to Gato's throat faster than either him or the Samurai wannabes he used as thugs could even follow, before intoning almost lazily, "Quit your complaining, Gato. In order to be sure that the old man dies, I will be taking Kenji with me, and will be taking the job personally." At the mention of his name, Kenji Yori, a Ronin who had been trained by a Samurai who had himself been above ANBU-level by ninja standards, woke up and got to his feet. The Ronin glared at the two thugs, scoffing at the weaklings who dared to call themselves Ronin. Kenji may officially have been known as a Ronin, but he had been taught to follow the way of Bushido, unlike the fakers, who would go against the Bushido as easily as they would breathe, such as killing innocents or hunting beasts without needing to eat the meat of the animal. The two knew though, that they stood no chance against the Ronin, as he was not only well-trained, but was in possession of a very powerful sword, the weapon Kazeshini. The blade's first release, even without the true form or power of the blade, was terrifying to those who had seen it and lived to tell the tale, and was said to reap lives like farmers reaped wheat. As Gato and his flunkies left, Kenji and Zabuza left in order to set up an ambush along the road coming towards the town from the coast nearest to the mainland.


End file.
